GM rolls out the dough to fight leukemia

New York — General Motors has nearly a quarter century history of supporting cancer related causes. And now that cause is getting even more executive attention.

After waging a two-year battle against leukemia, General Motors Corporation's vice chairman Harry Pearce wants to bring the issue of increasing the funding for blood-related cancers — leukemia, lymphoma, and myeloma — directly to the board rooms of other corporations in the U.S. and around the world.

Recognizing the role he can play as a corporate leader, Pearce is launching a personal crusade to raise millions of new research dollars for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, the world's largest private organization concerned with finding cures for blood-related cancers.

The funds will be earmarked for the Society's new Specialized Center of Research (SCOR) program — one of the most ambitious research initiatives ever undertaken in the attack on blood-related cancers. GM is leading the way with a $1.5 million dollar grant over five years to help fund the SCOR program.

Pearce, who underwent an allogeneic bone marrow transplant for the treatment of acute myelogenous leukemia (AML), knows firsthand how important new research can be to developing life-saving treatments for blood-related cancers. The protocol he received at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle was state-of-the-art, using the blood stem cells donated by his brother.

"It would not be an overstatement to say that the current funding for research into the blood cancers saved my life," Pearce said. "General Motors is at the forefront of companies battling cancer in every way it can, and I am very proud to be working for this company."

Now recovered from the bone marrow transplant and back to his executive position at General Motors, Pearce wants to make sure that more funds are available for blood-related cancers, especially at a time when the outcome of this research is more promising than ever before.

"This is the time when we can really make a difference in finding new and better therapies and when the concept of a cure is actually conceivable," Pearce said. "The SCOR program is a focused effort where the ability to find breakthroughs is very real."

Applying his management skills to this corporate fundraising drive, Pearce plans to document for his corporate colleagues the financial costs associated with blood-related cancers and the impact of these diseases on employers.

Each year, an estimated 100,000 Americans are diagnosed with leukemia, lymphoma, and myeloma, many having to go on disability to receive very expensive treatments, such as bone marrow transplantation, which usually costs upwards of $250,000.

Realizing that "more than a written letter is needed," Pearce also is producing a video featuring patients from across the U.S. who have benefitted from research into blood-related cancers so his colleagues can see firsthand what is now possible and why their investment in new research dollars is so important. Once he sends this video to peers, he is prepared to bring researchers to the doorsteps of corporations for one-on-one meetings.

"This won't fail because of my lack of commitment," said Pearce. "I am willing to make every effort because the results are so important."

In 1998, Pearce was diagnosed with AML, a common but potentially deadly form of leukemia in adults. After consulting with a number of leading cancer centers and researching different treatment options on the Internet, Pearce decided upon a stem cell transplant and chemotherapy protocol at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.

Although the protocol was designed for patients under ago 50, Pearce — then 55 — was accepted because of his overall good health and because one of his brothers was a perfect match.

Today, Pearce's cancer is in complete remission and despite some lingering effects from the transplant — chronically dry mouth and eyes and numbness on the right side of his face from a painful bout with shingles — the corporate executive is ready for the next challenge of his life: elevating support for cancer research as a business priority.

Pearce's commitment to raise corporate dollars for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's SCOR initiative will increase the number of grants available to those scientists who are conducting breakthrough research on blood-related cancers. Each SCOR grant provides $7.5 million over a five-year period and is renewable.

The SCOR grants are the newest and largest research grants ever funded by the Society, which without additional corporate support has already earmarked $67.5 million over the next three years to fund nine SCOR grants.

The first three SCOR grant winners are teams of scientists at Weill Medical College of Cornell University, the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and Dr. Brian Druker of Oregon Health Sciences University.

Source: General Motors